Roses Bloom, Roses Wither
by VEKTOR
Summary: Ragna's always been on the run, used to solitude. Rachel's always been nothing more than an Observer, unable to truly help anyone, also alone. Can that all be changed by a single battle? Rachel x Ragna.


One could say it was slightly ironic that an SS-class most wanted criminal was actually the predicted savior of the world, whereas a high-ranking member of the Novus Orbis Librarium – what could be considered the police force – was actually the one man who desired the destruction of basically everything good, pure and innocent. Quite a reversal of stereotypical roles, anyone would say.

But that was how things were nowadays, nothing as it seemed anymore. For the SS-class criminal, Ragna the Bloodedge, things not being as they seemed was a common occurence. Allies turned to enemies, everyone was hunting him, and to even find a moment's rest on days where he'd been spotted by a member of the NOL was a rare luxury in and of itself.

Today was one of those days, as he was faced by not only a powerful member of the NOL, but also a powerful person in general, and lastly, quite possibly his greatest enemy as well. Yes indeed, the man known as Hazama did have his connections in the NOL, seeing as he was captain of the Librarium's intelligence division. However, due to the fact that appearances can be deceiving, and Hazama's true form was a master of deception, he was, in fact, as far placed from the Novus Orbis Librarium's true interests as possible. For this person was actually Terumi, one of the Six Heroes who betrayed the others. And now he was looking at the one person who had been an annoyance to him time and time again.

"Heyy kid. Didn't expect to see you around here, hahaha. What are you doing, taking a little stroll like this? Don't you have more people to kill, souls to steal or y'know, the NOL to mess with? I didn't think you'd have time to be lazy like this." said Hazama, smiling and licking his lips like a twisted snake enjoying the anger and frustration of his prey.

True enough, Ragna should have been going on with his mission, his purpose, but even legendary public figures like The Grim Reaper needed their rest sometimes. Ragna didn't particularly love this world, but he wasn't like Terumi. He didn't hate the world completely, and he could find joy in the little things. After all, because of his being on the run and constantly knowing nothing but evasion and solitude, those little things were all he could really partake in.

Ragna looked at Terumi, a quiet but concentrated anger rising up in his eyes like steam. Not being able to bear just staring at a creature so treacherous and despicable as this, he said, "And what about you, _Terumi?_What the hell are you doing on a grassy plain like this. It's not like you at all. Don't you have some obsession you should be taking care of? I don't know, something about Cauldrons, smelting some shit together, something like that? I hope you didn't come here just to chat, because you've already gotten as much as I'm gonna give of that."

_The Wheel of Fate is turning.._  
><em>REBEL 1<br>ACTION!_

Saying that, he became aware of his giant sword, the Blood-Scythe resting comfortingly against his back and lunged at the green-haired man, landing several blows with his fists, all of which Hazama parried with expert skill. Hazama returned the hits with his own, two of which Ragna managed to block, and one of which pierced his guard and encouraged him to jump in the air and dash back, away from Hazama, before he could land a slow and quite damaging strike.

The Grim Reaper felt that this was an opportunity for retaliation yet again, so he gathered up some seithr from the surrounding environment and felt it ignite into purple flames in his right hand. "Hell's...", Ragna started, before being knocked back by an attack of unexpected force.

He fell to one knee and slid back a large distance from the impact, then when he looked back up he saw a huge spiked chain flowing around Terumi, a symbol of the snake-like characteristics both the madman and his weapon shared. Ouroboros. That was its name.

Terumi grinned at Ragna and asked, "Aww, what's the matter? Weren't you the one that wanted to fight and everything? Y'know, people used to have this saying, I think it was 'Pick your battles' or something like that? Don't go whipping out your oversized sword every time ya don't like something, Ragna."

With that, Ragna stood up and quickly closed the distance to Hazama, taking his sword in hand and using it to launch Hazama high into the air with a raging scream of "Inferno Divider!" Ragna jumped into the air after him and, after punching him twice, grabbed him by the neck. Just as he was about to thrust his knee into Hazama's stomach, he felt the treacherous snake break free of his grab, both he and Ragna flying backwards in opposite directions.

"Oh, I should have known better than to question your addiction to using that stupidly large piece of metal. Look, now I've gone and made ya mad," Hazama said with a smooth voice and a small smirk on his face. "Really," he continued, "I don't even know why that blood-sucking flower bunny pays so much attention to you. I thought you were supposed to be stronger by now, what with people whispering your name in fear around here."

Ragna was barreling down upon Terumi yet again, but as soon as he heard him talk about the person he was referring to, his eyes widened slightly and he lost some control of his movement, allowing Hazama to land several consecutive hits before launching him backwards. Before Ragna even had a chance to recover, he felt a mystical force wrap itself around him and could tell that this was far from good.

At the same time, the girl Terumi was talking about was actually standing atop a nearby cliff, observing this battle with a small sense of regret about the fact that she couldn't do anything to stop it. She wasn't supposed to. Rachel Alucard, the vampire who had been helping Ragna on several occasions, was merely an Observer. Ragna was the one whose job it was to get things done and save what was left of the world.

The Grim Reaper felt himself being pulled towards his adversary, felt the pain of what seemed to be a million slashes all over his body. Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse, he could have sworn that through his hazy vision he saw several snakes appear from Terumi's body. He heard Terumi scream, "Die, Die, Die, Die, DIIIEEEE!" in a maniacal voice that would have even rivaled the hysteria Ragna's brother Jin sometimes found himself in. The snake heads all converged in one spot: Ragna, and he was thrown back a ridiculously large distance. As Ragna hit the ground, he didn't think he could get back up again...

_DISTORTION FINISH!_

...Until he vaguely remembered something in his mind. Something from a long time ago. Somebody had said something to him. She had said, "Listen to me. Never admit defeat. Endure whatever pain you may face, and fight until your last breath, as a human being. Even if you are ugly, and pathetic, and broken... Please, Ragna."

That was.. who was that person? Ragna suddenly took hold of the memory and realized it was Rachel. He made her a promise. The blood seeping out of seemingly every pore in his body, Ragna gripped the handle of his sword in his gloved hand and stood up shakily. He couldn't let Terumi win. After all that he had done to him and those around him, there was no way he could let him just walk away now.

Sensing the fact that Ragna was not quite down and out, Hazama let out a nasty chuckle and turned around to look at him slowly, saying "Now, this is about to get interesting!" The two looked at each other for a moment of rest, knowing that there wouldn't be too much time for it in a few seconds.

_REBEL 2  
>ACTION!<em>

This time, it was Hazama who attacked first, sending chains every which way, with Ragna barely being able to dodge them. He felt himself dying slowly, at the very edge of his strength. He knew he needed to do something, and he had something in mind. When he saw an opening, he spun in the air and punched Hazama, then did a spinning kick and hit him again with a hungry roar of "GAUNTLET HADES!"

Once Hazama's body hit the ground, before allowing him a chance to recover, Ragna swung his blade forward, and, screaming "DEAD SPIKE!" felt some of Hazama's lifeforce get drained into Ragna's own body. Hazama rolled backwards, but Ragna was on him yet again, swinging the Blood-Scythe first up, then sharply cleaving it downwards to drain even more of Hazama's life. Ragna felt quite a bit better from the absorbed life-force, and on that note he jumped into the air and dashed backwards, away from Hazama who would surely recover quickly in time to retaliate.

Although, seeing that Hazama was still stunned from the barrage of attacks Ragna had unleashed upon him, The Grim Reaper decided that he may as well try to end it right then and there.

He felt the seithr in the air around him pulse and warp around his right arm, then move away from it and wrap itself tightly around his sword. His grip on the handle of the weapon clenched extremely tight as he was in a ready stance for the last attack he would launch.

"CARNAGE SCISSORS!", he screamed after which he seemingly flew forward with a burst of speed towards Hazama, but what happened next was hugely unexpected. When he reached the place Hazama was supposed to be, he wasn't there, and looking down, he found Ouroboros wrapped around his sword.

"No..", he had time to say before the sword was ripped out of his hands and after flying through the air for several seconds, landed a large distance away from Ragna.

The next thing Ragna felt was the shock and pain of a billion cuts on his body.

_FINISH!  
>RAGNA LOSE!<em>

Then he fell to the ground in a heap, blood falling from his mouth, thinking to himself, _So I guess this is it... _before he lost consciousness.

* * *

><p>When he woke up, Ragna was a bit scared to open his eyes because he could have been taken literally anywhere. Maybe someone from the NOL had come to pick him up and arrest him, maybe he was awaiting execution at this very moment. Or maybe, maybe he was even already dead..<p>

Choosing to get information on his environment through means other than his sight for the time being, he felt that he was actually lying in the most comfortable bed his body had the pleasure of lying in. The air smelled fresh and clean, but from the temperature of it, Ragna gathered that he was somewhere indoors. It actually smelled a little bit too good for just air.. was that a small essence of perfume he sensed? Not too long after sensing the beautiful smell, he heard the sound of a cup being placed down on a cup plate or coaster of some kind. He decided that he would open his eyes then.

What he saw definitely shocked him at least a little bit. He was indeed lying in a very comfortable bed, but the presence of the girl who was sitting on the edge of the bed drinking one of her black teas was what startled him.

"Rachel! What.. I.. What are you doing here? Where is here? What's going on!", Ragna spouted, his head full of questions that were bouncing around in his battle-weary mind. Rachel took another sip of tea, then placed the cup and coaster on a little bed-side table.

The calmness with which she performed this act made Ragna even more impatient, his eyes widening like black holes opening up in the vacuum of space.

Seeing Ragna's flustered face, Rachel asked, "Ragna. Why are you so startled? You haven't been having any perverted dreams about me, have you?"

"What? No!", Ragna yelled indignantly, "Anybody would be this freaked out if they woke up in your bed, with you sipping tea all peacefully beside them, bunny-leech!"

Rachel looked at Ragna for a second, then quickly said, "Good. I wouldn't want somebody as powerful and important as me to be thought of in such disgusting ways, let alone in the mind of one who can barely stand up without the help of an ally." After those words left her mouth though, her eyes seemed to fill with what Ragna could only guess was disappointment. But.. why?

He didn't have time to think about it long because he became aware of the fact that the pain from the battle with Terumi was subsiding more and more every second.

"Oh well, whatever," Ragna said as he realized they were at the Alucard castle and turned his neck a bit to the right to look directly at Rachel. "It's a good thing my injuries heal this fast. I suppose I have you to thank for that too. If it wasn't for you biting me after I lost my arm.."

Ragna looked down and his thoughts shifted to memories of him dying outside of that burning church. _Saya.._ _Why did Jin.._ His face visibly changed to a softer form of the grimace he usually wore. One not of anger but of sorrow. Ragna thought of how Terumi had cut off his right arm and just left him to die there. And just as everything had seemed bleak and helpless, he'd felt two perfectly shaped fangs bite into him.

They were cold but brought forth so much hope. And in some freakish and almost perverse way, when Ragna thought about it, that feeling of those two fangs punching through his skin felt good. It felt so good. His eyes turned up to look at Rachel's mouth.

That, combined with Ragna's changing facial expressions caused her to ask, "Ragna? Are you alright? I do hope you realize you are staring at my lips." Although the word "_warm"_ seemed to be missing from Rachel's vocabulary outright, the voice and caution with which she said that did seem to be a good deal warmer than her usual self.

Ragna was brought back to earth by the vampire's words, which carried a different intent behind them than Ragna cared to admit to himself. He confirmed, "Uhh, yeah, I'm fine Rachel. Just thinking about some stuff, that's all."

When he finally noticed that Rachel was overly caring about his current condition, his curiousity got the best of him and he questioned her, stating, "There's something different about you bunny-leech."

"What do you mean?" Rachel's eyes widened and her lips parted a tiny bit.

The criminal continued his point, "Well I mean.. Your cold and uncaring, sadistic manner is all gone for some reason. You sure Terumi didn't also beat your head in after he got me? You never act like this."

"Ragna! What could you possibly be trying to suggest!", Rachel shot back at him. However, she turned her head so that Ragna couldn't see her eyelids close halfway. So that Ragna couldn't see the neutral line her mouth always took the shape of drop into an uncharacteristic frown. _He called me cold and uncaring.. Sadistic. Maybe to everyone else, sure but.. He's even convinced that I behave that way towards him intentionally. I wish I could.._ Her thoughts broke off as she heard Ragna speak again, about something different this time.

Without turning around to look at him, Ragna's inquisitive voice reached her, "Rabbit, I gotta ask you. You knew what was happening in that fight, why didn't you do anything, or help out or come stop it? You know, something like that."

Finally, Rachel moved to face him again and solemnly replied, "I am simply an Observer. I cannot actually intervene with any events happening. I cannot change anything. It's your job to do all of the things that need doing, Ragna. It's my job to.. See all possibilities and timelines."

After hearing Rachel's reply, Ragna could have sworn he saw a single tear roll out of her right eye and slide down her cheek. By the time he blinked and opened his eyes again, it was gone and there was no trace of the wetness on her face at all. Like it had never been there to begin with. _Eyes must be playing tricks on me._ Ragna thought. For a while, Ragna hadn't been thinking about his body, instead trying to figure out where he was or what Rachel was doing there with him, but now that he thought about it he realized that he was incredibly thirsty.

"Hey. Bunny." he started. "I'm kind of thirsty. My body's taken a huge beating and uh, I haven't drank or eaten anything in a while. I'm not actually hungry but.. Do you mind if I have some of that tea you're always drinking?" He didn't particularly want the tea. _But I doubt she's just gonna give me water if I asked. More likely to gimme something like wine, knowing her. Maybe I shouldn't have asked for the tea though, hope she doesn't react to it too badly._

Just as Ragna thought she was about to admonish him for asking her to let him have some of her favorite beverage in the universe, the small vampire girl took an extra cup from a cupboard nearby and filled it to the brim with black tea. She slowly and carefully brought it and a saucer over to Ragna, who took them and began drinking the dark liquid right away.

_Huh, it's not hot enough to burn me._ Ragna said to himself in his head, surprised._ It's warm enough to taste and feel like this is the way it's meant to be drank, but not boiling or anything. Guess that bunny-leech knows everything, even the exact temperature it should be._

Before he really realized it, he was downing the entire cup without so much as a second thought. When he was finished, he handed the cup and saucer back to her.

After she put them down, she looked up to see Ragna staring at her through slowly closing eyelids, not even bothering to try and look away. She didn't move, and neither did he. Rachel didn't actually mind him looking at her like that. In fact.. A part of her wished he did it more often.

Ragna broke the silence by admitting, "Y'know Rachel, all that tea you drink, I used to think you were nuts because of it. Now, though, I gotta say, it's not actually that bad. I kinda liked it. A bit bitter but I'm sure I'll get used to it.. If I add some sugar."

Finding it a bit endearing that Ragna – the man who had fought countless battles and had been a runaway, outcast, criminal all these years – was admitting that he liked tea, and even more so that he thought he needed sugar to fully enjoy it, Rachel smiled. It was childish in a way. In more than one way, actually, Ragna was more of a boy than he was a man. He was just a boy that had to grow up too fast. Still smiling at him, Rachel felt something stir in her heart. When she reflected on what it was, exactly, she could only come to one conclusion. _I am happy that Ragna enjoys something I like as well._

The Grim Reaper didn't know if it was the calming effect of the warm tea or if he was still delirious from battle, or maybe even Rachel's smile, which looked more genuine than anything else he'd seen for a long time. He didn't know if it was any of those things, but in a small way that only one possibility in a million could allow, he liked the fact that he and Rachel had a simple pleasure like this in common. Away from the fighting and struggle. Just.. tea.

He made himself comfortable and lay back down on the bed. He realized that this was Rachel's bed. He was lying in Rachel's bed.. She wasn't only a friend to him in his mind. She was something else as well. A teacher? Sure, that too. But that wasn't all. Closing his eyes and lying on his back, Ragna felt Rachel's hand softly rest atop his forehead. As if she had a magic touch, all of the worry that resided in his body and mind was evicted instantly, and he fell into a peaceful sleep.


End file.
